Weeping Willow
by ambiguouswriter
Summary: What if Draco and Hermione met before Hogwarts? Draco pushes her away as soon as he finds out she is a muggleborn. When she realizes she doesn't really need him in her life it turns out that maybe he needs her. / Critique is welcomed. I am not English native speaker but I love to write and I started writing this simply to practise.
1. Chapter 1

Weeping Willow

It actually felt like a goodnight dream that she rarely came across. Like a compensation for all the bad days she had and all the bullies she faced every day. Like a blank sheet, a new chance to start over. This heavy book that was lying on her lap contained so many information about her future life yet she wanted to know more and more.

'Hogwarts History' she whispered stopping herself from shouting with excitement. She was sure she will never get rid of the thrill that accompanied her since yesterday. Diagon Alley was full of wonders, the wands and cauldrons and brooms and books. Especially the books. Was that really all real?

She tried not to stare too hard at the faces of other future students her age. She desperately needed them to like her. She was to tired of spending all school breaks hidden in her books. Not that they were bad companions, but she would really appreciate a human contact other than her parents.

'Hey' she suddenly heard a proud, annoyed voice right above her head. 'Are you planning on sitting here all day? I've been waiting and waiting for you to go away.'

She looked up to see a very pale and very blond boy, looking at her with angry expression.

'I'm sorry I thought it's a free country. I don't see any name written on that bench.' She answered slamming her book. She hated when someone interrupted her contemplation. She was sitting in her favourite place, hidden under the branches of a huge weeping willow.

'You stupid muggles, you think you deserve everything in this world.' Said the boy, accenting the word 'muggle' with a disgust.

'Excuse me, I am not a muggle.' Hermione already learned that word and even though her parents were non-magical, she treated it as an offence. The boy's voice was unpleasant. She hugged her book with affection trying to expose the title.

'I never knew there was a magical family living around here. Thought it was just auntie.' He raised his eyebrows. 'Or maybe your parents are muggles. That would explain a lot.'

The way he said it made her think it's a bad thing. Like it's going to make her different. And she was done being this kid.

'We actually just moved here and I was wandering around.' She shrugged her arms. 'Are you going to Hogwarts too?' She asked trying to sound casual.

'Yeah, first year. I was trying to avoid my father, he is going all and all about how I have to be in Slytherin and how he hopes I get on the team and make him proud.'

'You don't want to be a Slytherin then?'

'I do and I will, all my family were. It's the best. Where would you like to be? Not Hufflepuff I suppose.' Again, the tone of his voice showed some disgust.

'I guess I will end up in Revenclaw. I really like books, you know.' She was glad she managed to read Hogwarts History in one day. The boy didn't answer. 'So you don't like quidditch?'

'What? Of course I do. Why would you ask that?'

'You said you're hiding from your father who's going all and all about it.'

'Well, yeah, don't you parents do that? Talk about expectations and grades and subjects when all you are looking for is just being there and having the time of your life?'

'No. They just want me to make some friends.' She said, because her parents have no idea about the wizarding world.

'You are lucky then.' he said finally sitting down next to her. 'I'm Draco, by the way. Draco Malfoy.' The way he says his name made her feel weird.

'Hermione Granger.' She says carefully.

'I don't know any Grangers.'

'We moved here from France.' She added quickly.

'Right. You said you just moved. I don't really live here, just my auntie, my nanny actually. Her husband died recently so we try to visit her more often.'

'That's nice.'

'My father doesn't really want to. He doesn't care. But today my mother dragged him. I like to came here, she always tells me stories about her times in Hogwarts. The good times, not the dark stuff. Your parents talk about the dark times too?'

'They don't talk to me much. They are always busy.' Hermione shrugged hoping it will do. 'I would like to know more about Hogwarts so I read.'

'I can tell you if you like.' He said. It seemed to her that he liked the attention. 'But not today, maybe I'll send you an owl and we can meet when I'm here again.'

Hermione smiled at him. If only that proud and selfish boy knew how much it meant to her. How excited she was about getting a letter delivered by an owl. How excited she was that he wanted to meet her again.

'You can tell your parents you already made a friend so they can babble about the grades and other stuff.' He said as she smiled at him and walked away.

Thinking about her parents made her feel guilty. That was the first time she has ever lied and they always told her she should be herself while making friends. But this time she lied and it worked. Life wasn't a book with pretty covers after all.

* * *

Draco has been bored almost all summer. Crabbe had spattergroit and Goyle went to Ireland to visit grandparents, so he was left all alone. He tried reading, flying and even practising magic but how many days can you spend on doing the same things. He already heard all aunties stories and he had enough food for the rest of his life. So he went for a walk and he met this girl and she gave him her address. Now Draco tried to analyse what to do next. He felt like throwing out the piece of paper she gave him because:

1\. She was a girl.

2\. She said she would probably be a Ravenclaw and

3\. he never heard about Granger family so

4\. His father would probably not approve.

But on the other hand:

1\. He was bored.

2\. He felt like she would listen to him and he liked when someone paid attention.

3\. He really had noting to do.

4\. She seemed smart and it could be beneficial to have her as a friend.

5\. He was bored.

So he shoved the address into his pocket. Just in case. And he wrote her the next day.

* * *

It was definitely weird to be friends with Draco Malfoy. Or maybe it just felt weird because she never really had a friend before. He didn't act like a normal kid. Kids from her muggle school used to play soccer all the time or fight wooden swords. Draco Malfoy, to her pleasant surprise, liked to read. He did talk a lot about quidditch of course, and she already knew all the rules, but he also liked to talk about the books he red through the summer.

But mostly he was the one to talk, Hermione was too afraid she would accidentally say something to reveal that she is in fact a muggleborn. And it seemed to suit him well.

"Why are you always so quite?" he asked one day.

"I like to listen to you talking." she said and it was partially true. Even though he liked to swagger and his voice always sounded too proud, he had a lot of interesting things to say and it seemed like he never had good listeners.

"It would be nice if you said something from time to time. My throat is getting sore."

Hermione laughed and reached to her bag. She pulled off a book of charms.

"I was thinking we could prepare for school. We have just two weeks left." she said. Has it really been over a month that they knew each other? They met frequently, even three times a week. Draco's mother must have been very fond of his auntie. Or maybe she was trying to run away from her husband.

"Do you have your wand?" asked Draco.

"I do but I didn't mean... I mean, we can't use wands." she said carefully.

"We can now. After the first year, yeah, they would kick us out but now? The rules don't apply yet."

"Okay. Than I think we can try."

"How about we start with something easy..." said Draco, taking the book from her.

It was kind of fun to be friends with Hermione Granger. She didn't ignore him like his father and she listened to him and actually understood what he said, unlike Crabbe and Goyle. And she was a hell of a witch. She mastered all three spells they practised in about an hour and helped him to master them as well. But he would never admit those things to her.

It was a lucky coincidence that his mother insisted on visiting Aunt Rachel so often. He was aware his parents were having trouble but he was sure they would overcome them as always.

"You have to start obeying me Narcissa!" he heard one day. "I was right about Andromeda! You will see I was right about sending Draco to Durmstrang! And I am right about Rachel! I am always right!"

"Rachel may befriend whoever she likes. Even a muggle. It's none of your business!" shouted Narcissa. "And my son will never go to a school that is run by a Death Eater!"

"You married a Death Eater!"

"I married you. Than you become... "

"Crucio."

Draco knew what it meant. He heard it a few times but never saw it on his own eyes. This time he was already standing in the door when the spell hit his mother. He looked in her ayes filled with pain and it scared him so much he couldn't even scream. As soon as Lucius saw him he reversed the spell. But Draco sill stood there unable to move.

"He is just a boy." whispered Narcissa, trying to get herself together. "And you will never let him watch such things again."

"He has to know" Said Lucius as Draco wasn't in the room. "that this is what happens when you disobey me. He may be too young now but sooner or later he will grow up. And he will be punished if he doesn't live by the rules of my house."

Narcissa finally stood up and took Draco's hand. She apparated them with no goodbye.

It was a hot day and Hermione was sitting under the weeping willow and reading a book she borrowed from Draco. She jumped when the branches opened and she saw Draco, his face red and tears in his eyes.

"What are you doing here?' they both said. There was anger in Draco's voice. "I didn't tell you to come today!"

"I know I just... I like this place. I was reading... What happened?' She said nervously.

"It's none of you damn business" he said raising his voice.

"Maybe I can help" she offered carefully.

"No you can't. No one can. It wasn't my damn fault I was born into this family! Why couldn't I have normal parents like yours?"

Hermione frowned, thinking iweather he would said something like that if he knew the truth.

"Did your father do something?" she asked.

"He used an unforgivable curse at her. Again." he answered not looking at her.

"What... what is an unforgivable curse?"

"It is unforgivable. And it is illegal."

"Than why..."

"Don't you understand Hermione?! He doesn't apply to any rules. He has all the power, money, everything. My mother wouldn't dare to leave him so we have to live trying to avoid his anger. And he is always good to me but... but today he said he would use those curses at me as soon as I grow up. I have to obey him. Always."

He punched the tree so hard his hand started to bleed.

"Calm down Draco." Hermione touched his arm, making him sit down. "I may not understand this. But you have to calm down. How about... I will tell you a story?"

Draco didn't answer so she took it as a yes.

"Once upon a time there was a bad kind who married a good queen." she started trying to make up a story "and they soon had a child, a beautiful boy of fair skin and hair in the colour of sun."

Draco relaxed as she spoke and laid down on the grass.

"And the people of the kingdom wondered whether he would grow up to be like his mother or father."

"Hemione!" a voice interrupted them. "Are you hiding under that tree again? Would you come here? Dinner is ready!"

Hemione jumped up in panic.

"I have to go, It's my mother."

"But you didn't finish the story. Can I come with you? I'd like to meet your parents." Draco didn't wanted to be left alone now that he found comfort in her. He was used to going through stuff like this alone. Now he didn't have to.

"I don't think It's a good idea." said Hermione.

"Are you ashamed of me?" he smirked.

"No."

"Than why?" Draco looked her in the eyes. He looked hurt.

"Because..." she thought about what he said _Why couldn't I have normal parents like yours?_ "Because I lied to you. About my parents."

"What?"

"They are muggle. I am a muggleborn. I lied because I wanted you to be friends with me."

"You are joking, right?" Draco didn't seem to believe her a bit.

"No, I am not. You can come and meet them, you will see that whatever you have against muggles..."

"But you are so good with spells." he interrupted her. "You know so much. You have to have a wizard in you family."

"I'm a quick learner. And I read a lot." she shrugged. "I was afraid to tell you, I thought you wouldn't like me anymore..."

"And you were right!" Draco suddenly raise his voice. "How could you?! I can't be friends with a muggleborn! My father would kill me!"

"Draco, you don't have to think like your father..."

"Of course I do. This was wrong, all of this!"

"We can still be friends this doesn't change who I am." Hermione tried to defend herself as she started to cry.

"Yes It does! And if you ever mention that we know each other while we are at Hogwarts I would end you!" he had something bad in his eyes. He wasn't joking. She never saw him this angry even before, when he was so upset about his father.

"I wouldn't dare to admit I was friends with such a coward!" she said and it hurt her probably as much as him.

"You don't belong in my world." he said and this was probably a goodbye. He run away. And Hermione promised to herself she would never lie about herself again.

* * *

"Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever a surprise when I got my letter," he overheard her in Hogwarts Express. So now she could admit it. He tried to think about her with a disgust but all he wanted to do is to tell her his father has apologized. He took him and his mother to a restaurant. He even played Quidditch with him. All was well for now. But instead he stopped and listened.

"I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you"

"I'm Ron Weasley." said the first boy. Draco immediately remembered all he heard his father says about Weasley family.

"Harry Potter" said the other boy. So It was true. Harry Potter was about to be his classmate.

"Are you really?" said Hermione. "I know all about you, of course – I got a few extra books. for background reading, and you're in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century."

Draco felt weird. He didn't want her to be friends with those boys. But he didn't want to be her friend either. He couldn't. So what if he became a friend of Harry Potter instead? Hermione leaved soon and he came back to his compartment.

"Crabbe. Goyle. Lets go." he ordered and they followed him.

They entered the compartment that Hemione leaved few minutes ago. Draco recognized the black haired boy. They already talked at Madame Malklin.

"Is it true?" he said. "They're saying all down the train that Harry Potter's in this compartment. So it's you, is it?"

"Yes," said Harry looking at Draco's friends.

"Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle," Draco decided to introduce them. "And my name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

The Weasley boy started to cough suggestively. Draco took it as an offence.

"Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford." he said angrily. If this boy wanted to make fun of him he could easily exchange the favour. He turned back to Harry. "You'll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."

He held out his hand to shake Harry's, but Harry didn't take it.

"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks," he said coolly.

Draco felt rejected. He could feel his cheeks going red. So that's the way they want to play it.

"I'd be careful if I were you, Potter," he said slowly. "Unless you're a bit politer you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riffraff like the Weasleys and that Hagrid, and it'll rub off on you." Both Harry and Ron stood up.

"Say that again," Ron said, his face as red as his hair.

"Oh, you're going to fight us, are you?" Malfoy sneered.

"Unless you get out now," said Harry.

"But we don't feet like leaving, do we, boys? We've eaten all our food And you still seem to have some." Draco really wanted to show those boys their place. He wasn't use to being offended. His whole life his father told him he is better than everyone. And he simply believed him. He wasn't going to leave it here. But than he heard Goyle yell and there was a rat hanging off his knuckle. Draco heard some steps and decided they should leave.

On the corridor he nearly collided with Hermione. She avoided his eyes and she went into Harry Potter's compartment again.

"They are all worth themselves..."

"Did you say something Draco?" asked Crabbe.

"No." Draco said angrily. "Hurry up, we're almost there!"

* * *

All lessons were wonderful. She already asked Ron's brother about them, during the feast. Charms, Transfiguration ever the History of Magic- she loved it all. On Friday she was suppose to have her fist Potions. With Slytherin house. She already spotted Draco in the crowd two times. She was already sitting at a Griffindor table when he was sorted. She raised her eyes at him. She had also seen him in the train but she didn't look at him. She was afraid. But that she thought why would she be afraid? She wasn't the coward who was afraid to think for herself. The sorting hat shouted Slytherin as soon as it touched his head. Hermione saw Draco smirk with satisfaction. So he got what he wanted. And she couldn't be more pleased to be in Gryffindor. All the other kids seemed so nice and she thought that maybe she wouldn't have trouble after all. She already met those two nice boys, Harry and Ron. And she helped Neville.

So slowly is bothered her less and less when she saw his face. So she didn't say anything when she heard him laugh about Harry during potions. And she tried not to seem upset when Snape ignored her while constantly complimenting Draco. She even ignored him when he stole Neville's Remembrall. Instead she focused on Harry, trying to stop him from being expelled. But then she overheard him talking to Harry and Ron.

"Tonight, if you want. Wizard's duel. Wands only – no contact. What's the matter? Never heard of a wizard's duel before, I suppose? Midnight all right? We'll meet you in the trophy room; that's always unlocked."

It was enough for her. Who was this insolent boy? Certainly not the Draco she spent summer with. Harry and Ron ignored her when she wanted to stop them. So she decided to talk to Draco.

She followed him to the Astronomy Tower. He was alone. She hesitated for a while.

"You're a Gryffindor for God's sake!" she told herself as she entered the tower. "What do you think you're doing?!" she said suddenly gaining confidence.

"Sending an owl, Granger." answered Draco looking into other direction.

"So now I am Granger to you?" she asked. "Why won't you even look at me? We were getting along so well and now..."

"I told you I can be friends with you! I can't be seen with you! I want nothing to do with you!"

"I know that it's not... Look, I heard you talk to Harry about this duel..."

"What about it?"

"Why are you being so... different? So mean. I know that your father..."

"This has nothing to do with my father, Granger. I just don't like Potter."

"Why?"

"Look, I tried to befriend him and he rejected me and was mean about it. So I'm not going to just leave it alone." said Draco insolently.

"Why must you be so proud?" asked Hermione.

"See? I can't like you for who you are and you can't like me for who I am. It's settled then." he finally looked her in the eyes.

"I guess it is." she hissed with resignation. "Are you really going to show up tonight?"

"If I feel like it." he replied and walked away.

* * *

He didn't show up at the duel. He hoped he would get Potter and Weasley expelled but it didn't happened. So he went on being pompous and vile. He often thought about that talk with Hermione. Why did she came? Was she worried for him? Or was she worried for those two fools? They weren't worried for her for sure. He just spied her as she entered girls bathroom, tears in her eyes, messy hair. Where were those two morons when she needed them?

The longer he pondered about it the less hungry he was. And it was the Halloween feast. He cursed Hermione and the day he met her. Who would have thought this little girl would put him in so much trouble?

"Troll" He heard a yell. "in the dungeons – thought you ought to know." belted professor Quirrell then sank to the floor in a dead faint.

The Great Hall plunged into chaos. And suddenly Draco felt the instinct to look for Hermione. He looked around desperately but he couldn't spot her.

"Prefects," Dumbledore rumbled, "lead your Houses back to the dormitories immediately!"

"Hurry up!" said the Slytherin prefect. "Malfoy, are you looking for someone?"

"_Yes!" _he wanted to say. Where was she? Was she safe? Why did he care?

"No" he said instead and he followed his classmates.

He couldn't sleep at night. He found himself tossing and turning and thinking what if the troll found her. She didn't deserve to die like this.

Next day he heard stories of brave Harry Potter and his friend Ron Weasley who have defeated the troll and saved Hermione Granger. And he was furious with himself. If he wasn't a coward he would have saved her himself and he would be the who they talk about. After classes he caught her alone, on her way to library.

"Granger." he thundered and she looked at him. "Are you okay?" he asked calming his tone.

"I am perfectly fine, Malfoy." she replied. "Why do you care?"

"I don't" he explained quickly and walks away. They didn't speak again until Christmas.

* * *

Christmas was nice but she couldn't stop thinking about Nicolas Flamel, Snape and all those riddles. She was happy and her parents seemed to notice it. She talked about Harry and Ron and Hogwarts and she sounded so blessed. She promised herself to think only about good things. And Draco Malfoy was not one of them.

It was hard to get over the way he treated her but she had real friends now and a mystery to solve. She tried to spend as much time with her family as possible. Hogwarts was great, but she still missed her parents. But on New Years Eve she sneaked out to read under the weeping willow again. She loved that tree despite all the history. And there he was. Draco Malfoy himself, hands shaking, a bruise on his eye. She couldn't turn her back on him even if she wanted to.

"What happened?" she trembled. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." he answered with a lump in his throat.

"You don't seem fine, Draco. Let me help you."

"My dad hit me."

"Why?" she demanded.

"Why wouldn't he? Harry Potter is on the team. Harry Potter defeated a troll. A muggleborn ties with me in most of the classes, sometimes she's even better. Why wouldn't he punish me?" he yelled.

"Draco, he can't do this to you..."

"Stop it." he couldn't even blame her. It wasn't her fault. "He was drunk, it will be all good tomorrow." His still shivering, but maybe it's just because it's cold outside.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" she asked.

"You don't have to be nice. It's not like I was the school year." he snapped.

"It's okay." she said. "I think... I kind of understand now."

"How... how was your Christmas?" he whispered.

"It was okay." she shrugged her arms. "I missed my parents so I was happy to be home. How about yours?"

"They were okay. Until now."

"I'm really sorry." she said with honesty.

"You shouldn't be."

They sat there in silence. It was snowing again but the weeping willow shielded them from any wind or cold. And for a minute it was like before, like summer again.

"Once upon a time there was a bad king who married a good queen. They soon had a child, a beautiful boy of fair skin and hair in the colour of sun. And the people of the kingdom wondered whether he would grow up to be like his mother or father. The king was mad, and he was telling the young prince lies and the prince believed them because he was just a boy. And he never protested. But he didn't know that..."

"Hermione, stop." he demanded carefully. "It won't help me."

"How can I help you then?"

"Do you... Do you think maybe we... Can we built a snowman?"

She smiled at him. And they said no words after that. They just built a snowman from scratch, maybe trying to rebuilt something else too. They parted in silence this time. But when Hermione came back under the willow the next day the snowman already melted. And she was afraid that this small thread of understanding between them melted too. She realized than that maybe she didn't need Draco Malfoy, but maybe he needed her.

* * *

She didn't try to speak to him again in school. She ignored him as he clearly wanted her too. But he hoped she would maybe try. And she tried to provoke her by being mean to her friends. He even got himself into a fight. But she still acted like they were strangers to each other. So he started following her. He found it quite amusing. He saw a dragon that this fool Hagrid brought into his hut. He followed her and her moronic friends as they were trying to take that dragon- he had no idea where. And than McGonagall caught him.

"Detention!" she shouted. "And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you –"

"You don't understand, Professor. Harry Potter's coming – he's got a dragon!"

"What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies! Come on – I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!"

Soon Potter, Longbottom and Hermione joined him. She pierced him with her eyes. They lost points and got detention. Draco didn't regret it. All in all, it was Gryffindor who lost 150 points. And Hermione acknowledged his presence. But during detention he couldn't risk being caught at talking to her. So he observed everything in silence. And he did so until the last day of the year. He was curious about the stone and everything that happened to her, Potter and Weasley. It could have been him. But he didn't dare to ask her. And he didn't clap as she received points for her bravery. And he was furious when the House Cup was taken away from Slytherin. But he couldn't wait for summer.


	2. Chapter 2

2.

He was desperate for a talk. He was pacing the floor of his room, trying to decide weather to write to her. Who would have thought that Draco Malfoy's summers were boring. Once again he found himself stuck in his mansion, occasionally going to Quidditch matches or visiting his parents friends for dinners. Besides that, there was nothing to do. He was too old to play with toys, too young to go places by himself. Besides his Slytherin friends he had no one to spend time with. And Crabbe and Goyle weren't very interesting companions. They just followed his orders. It wasn't that enjoyable as it was at the beginning. He wanted to talk about books, discuss school subjects, talk about what would the next year be like or even argue about something. And Hermione seemed to be the only one suited for that. But he couldn't write to her. He was too proud for that. So every time he found himself in her at neighbourhood he went under the willow. But she wasn't there. Until the third week.

She was sitting on the grass, her back against the tree, her face buried in a book. Se he didn't notice him at first, or she simply pretended not to. He deserved that kind of treatment.

"What are you reading?" he finally asked.

"A book." she answered not even bothering to raise her eyes.

"What is it about?"

"A girl."

"What kind of girl?"

"An angry one."

She could be so infuriating sometimes. Draco tried not to let his emotions effect his actions. He sat down next to her, not daring to ask another question.

"What do you want Draco?" she asked after few minutes of silence. "You made it clear that we can't be friends, yet here you are again."

"I was bored." he said shrugging his arms. Hermione shut her book and begun to get up. "No, no! That's not what I meant... I just..."

"You just what?"

"I like talking to you. I like spending time with you. It's just..."

"No one can know."

"Yeah." Draco felt relief. Maybe she will understand.

"What are we going to do about it?"

"I don't know."

"Do you want to do something about it?" She pierced him with her eyes, that weird thing she did that made him feel under some kind of pressure.

"Yeah." he whispered.

She smiled at him. He wondered if she had thought about him. If she was also alone and desperate for a companion.

"How was your summer so far?"

"We went to the seaside. It was okay. Our car broke down though and we had to stay two more days. I wasn't complaining." She saw the mixed expression on his face. "You know what a car is don't you?"

"Of course I do. I just never knew anyone who used it." Hermione just laughed at him. She wanted to tell him that she haven't heard from Harry, but she decided it wasn't a good idea to mention her friends.

"It's weird to be away from school after all that months." she said instead.

"Yeah. You had so many adventures." His tone isn't unpleasant.

"Do you want me to tell you?" she asks carefully.

"Yeah."

And unlike the last summer it was her who finally had all those magical stories. And finally she was the one to talk. And Draco found it to be very enjoyable. Just to listen.

* * *

After weeks of waiting Ron finally wrote her a letter informing that Harry is safe at the Burrow. After she and Draco made amends, it was easier to forget her troubles, fill her days with doing homework together and discussing how the next year would be. They played magical chess and Hermione even got him to play scrabble with her. That was something she wouldn't be able to do with Harry and Ron. They just wouldn't be interested.

Days went by and the more time she spent under the Weeping Willow, the more she thought about how things would be in school. She didn't get her hopes high. Draco would probably still insult Ron and be mean to Harry. But maybe at least he would just ignore her. Or maybe they can even talk sometimes if they can find a way to be alone. Maybe, just maybe, it would be better.

As for now she was eating her breakfast, ready to leave for shopping. She couldn't wait to see the boys and for her parents to meet them. Finally she could introduce them to her real friends.

"Mum, I'm ready to leave." she shouted finishing her toast.

They went by car and through the Leaky Cauldron. She was looking around like crazy trying to spot Harry or Ron.

"Honey, we have to change the money. Calm down, I'm sure they will be here soon." said her father as they were entering Gringotts.

And just when they left she saw Harry, his clothes dirty like he just cleaned a fireplace.

"Harry! Harry! Over here!"

Harry looked up and she ran to him.

"What happened to your glasses? Hello, Hagrid – Oh, it's wonderful to see you two again -Are you coming into Gringotts, Harry?"

"As soon as I've found the Weasleys," said Harry.

"Yeah won't have long ter wait," Hagrid said with a grin.

Harry and Hermione looked around: Sprinting up the crowded street were Ron, Fred, George, Percy, and Mr. Weasley.

"Guess who I saw in Borgin and Burkes?" said Harry after Hagrid left. "Malfoy and his father."

Hermione frowned hearing her friends name. But she didn't say anything.

"Did Lucius Malfoy buy anything?" said Mr. Weasley sharply behind them.

"No, he was selling"

"So he's worried," said Mr. Weasley with grim satisfaction. "Oh, I'd love to get Lucius Malfoy for something..."

Hermione agreed with him in her head. Regarding all her sympathy to Draco, she wouldn't like him to suffer. Even if sometimes he caused her pain. But maybe if Lucius Malfoy was out of his life Draco would change his way of thinking.

But those informations weren't the end of the trouble. Just after Gilderoy Lockhart finished his announcement and forced Harry to take a picture with him she heard a familiar voice.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" said Draco Malfoy standing face to face with Harry.

"Famous Harry Potter, can't even go into a bookshop without making the front

page."

"Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" said Ginny suddenly. Hermione didn't think she heard her voice before.

"Potter, you've got yourself a girlfriend!" drawled Malfoy.

"Oh, it's you," said Ron, looking at Malfoy as if he were something unpleasant on the sole of his shoe. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry is here, eh?"

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," retorted Malfoy ignoring Hermione's look.

"I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."

Ron went as red as Ginny. He dropped his books into the cauldron too, and started toward Malfoy, but Harry and Hermione grabbed the back of his jacket.

"Ron!" said Mr. Weasley, struggling over with Fred and George."What are you doing? It's too

crowded in here, let's go outside."

"Well, well, well – Arthur Weasley."

And there was Lucius Malfoy himself. It was weird for Hermione to finally match the face to that cruel personality she's heard stories about. He stood with his hand on Draco's shoulder.

"Lucius," said Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," said Mr. Malfoy. "All those raids... I hope they're paying you overtime?"

He reached into Ginny's cauldron and extracted, from amid the glossy Lockhart books, a very old, very battered copy of A Beginner's Guideto Transfiguration.

"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy said. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of

wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

Mr. Weasley flushed darker than either Ron or Ginny.

"We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," he said.

"Clearly," said Mr. Malfoy, his pale eyes straying to Hermione's parents, who were watching

apprehensively. "The company you keep, Weasley... and I thought your family could sink no lower"

This time Hermione's face went red. Not from shame but from anger. Who was this man to judge her and her family? Who was he to see himself as a better one? She looked at Draco but he looked away.

There was a thud of metal as Ginny's cauldron went flying; Mr. Weasley had thrown himself at Mr. Malfoy, knocking him backward into a bookshelf. Dozens of heavy spellbooks came thundering down on all their heads; there was a yell of,

"Get him, Dad!" from Fred or George; Mrs. Weasley was shrieking, "No, Arthur, no!"; the crowd stampeded backward, knocking more shelves over;

"Gentlemen, please- please!" cried the assistant, and then, louder than all "Break it up, there, gents, break it up -"

After they finished the fight Lucius Malfoy thrown Ginny's book back into her cauldron.

"Here, girl – take your book – it's the best your father can give you -" Pulled himself out of

Hagrid's grip, beckoned to Draco and swept from the shop.

Hermione took a deep breath. She couldn't let anyone see that it effected her in anyway. And she was going to deal with Draco later.

* * *

"Are you angry with me?" he asked as soon as he arrived under the willow. It was the last day of summer vacation.

"What do you think?" Hermione raised her voice. "If you didn't provoke Harry and just ignore our presence none of it would happen and..."

"I'm sorry about what my father said. About your parents." Draco interrupted her.

"Oh, and you're not sorry about what he said about the Weasleys?"

"No, I... I don't..."

"You don't like Ron. So you're fine with insulting people you don't like even if they did nothing to deserve it! You are so childish, Draco!"

"I am a child." he said. He didn't have anything else to defend himself.

"Then grow up." she said and came back to her book. She always had a book to come back to when they had a fight. She would just read and ignore him, making him think about the things to say to make things better.

"Why are you reading this rubbish?" he asked noticing it's one of Lockhart's books.

"This is homework." she grunted. "And I happen to think they are brilliant."

"No kidding." Draco laughed. "This guy is a total fraud. Do you fancy him?"

"Don't you dare laugh at me."

"I wasn't going to." he shrugged. "I just don't agree with you opinion. I mean, you can fancy him all you like, he is said to be handsome. But you can't believe all those things he wrote?"

"You didn't even read them." she remarked.

"I red one of them. Voyages with Vampires or some nonsense like that. I don't believe a word."

"So you say he made that all up?"

"I don't know if he did. I just know he doesn't look like someone who defeats Vampires. He is a person who wouldn't dare to mess his hair. But like him all you want."

"I am going to." said Hermione promising herself she would read Voyages with Vampires next.

"Listen Hermione, we are going to Hogwarts tomorrow and..." he started tapping his hands.

"Don't worry I'm not gonna talk to you in public or anything..." she said with a cold voice.

"That's not about that. But, yeah, I would appreciate that."

"I knew it!" she yelled. "You just need me to kill your boredom during summer and then you would pretend I don't exist. Even better, you would throw insults at my friends and me and..."

"Calm down, I wanted to tell you something important. This year at Hogwarts..." he tried again.

"Have a good year Malfoy." she said and turn her back to him. She walked away red in her face.

* * *

Draco took out a page ripped from a book at the Flourish and Blotts. He overheard this father talk about dangerous things that are to happen this year in their school. And he had this exact book opened on this page. Informations about Basilisk. Draco had no idea what it all meant but if someone was to figure it out if was Hermione. He would have to think about other way to give it to her.

She couldn't believe it but Draco actually tried to talk to her few times. He tried to come up to her in a train but she could see him resign quickly after he saw Pansy walking through the corridor. He saw her reading Voyages with Vampires during breakfast and smirked at her from the Slytherin table. He even tried to make eye contact few times but she turned her head away quickly. He even tried to follow her once but she quickly started a conversation with Justin Finch-Fletchey. He finally gave up and was sending her hateful looks.

She knew it would be like this. She was aware he wouldn't like to talk to her openly during school. Yet there was some small shred of hope and she found herself feeling very hurt when her predictions turned out to be right. So she tried to show it wasn't bothering her. But like a year before, it finally had to come to a confrontation between him and her friends.

She went to the Quidditch field with Ron both expecting Harry's practice to be done. It wasn't so they decided to stay and watch. As soon as they saw Slytherin's team, along with Draco Malfoy, they decided to see what was going on.

"What's happening?" Ron asked Harry. "Why aren't you playing? And what's he doing here?"

He was looking at Malfoy, taking in his Slytherin Quidditch robes.

"I'm the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley," said Malfoy, smugly."Everyone's just been admiring the

brooms my father's bought our team.

Ron gaped, open-mouthed, at the seven superb broomsticks in front of him.

"Good, aren't they?" said Malfoy smoothly. "But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise

some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a

museum would bid for them."

The Slytherin team howled with laughter. Hermione couldn't take that any longer. He could ignore her, he could be ashamed of who she was but she wouldn't let him insult her friends.

"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in," she said sharply. "They got

in on pure talent."

The smug look on Draco's face flickered.

"No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood," he spat.

Hermione didn't expect that. She wasn't sure what that word meant but she could immediately tell it was very bad. She felt tears coming to her eyes but she did everything in her power to stop them. Flint had to dive in front of Malfoy to stop Fred and George jumping on him,

Alicia shrieked, "How dare you!"; and Ron plunged his hand into his robes, pulled out his wand, yelling, "You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" and pointed it furiously under Flint's arm at Malfoy's face.

A loud bang echoed around the stadium and a jet of green light shot out of the wrong end of Ron's

wand, hitting him in the stomach and sending him reeling backward onto the grass.

"Ron! Ron! Are you all right?" squealed Hermione.

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Instead he gave an almighty belch and

several slugs dribbled out of his mouth onto his lap.

The Slytherin team were paralysed with laughter. Flint was doubled up, hanging onto his new broomstick for support. Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist. The Gryffindors were gathered around Ron, who kept belching large, glistening slugs. Nobody seemed to want to touch him.

As they went to Hagrid's for help she held Ron tightly and tried to focus on helping him. But all she could think was how Draco could do that. Was it some kind of punishment for ignoring him? Or was it the truth, what he really thought of her? As soon as Ron explained her what it exactly meant she choose the second option. He didn't hurt her out of anger, which would be probably just as bad, but he just expressed his despise for her kind.

All she could do in that situation was to be thankful for the friends she had, always ready to defeat her. And maybe it was all that should have mattered.

* * *

He started to feel awful about half an hour after he said it. Mudblood. How did this word come up from his mouth? He heard his father use it plenty of times, he remembered all the talks they had. Mudbloods are no wizards- they are to be erased from this world. Yet Hermione was probably the best witch on the year. It made Draco question the statement.

But in that moment, when she said that he had bought his way into the team, he was so furious. After all that talks with her, she surely knew it was his dream. And he did went through trial and was accepted, the brooms were just his father way to make sure they will win the cup. It felt so unfair of her to say that, he had to fight back. And he felt so satisfied for a second, seeing that it had hit her, seeing Weasley vomit with snails that he just laughed. But as soon as he cooled off, up in the air he wanted to run to her and apologize. But that had to wait.

He waited for the opportunity. He waited for days and was so desperate that soon he would come up to her on the corridor. But one morning he saw her missing at the Griffindor table at breakfast so he ran to the library. It was empty to his relief. He found her in the back between the bookshelves.

"Hermione I am so sorry!" he said quickly and it made her jump. "I shouldn't have said..."

"I have nothing to say to you, Malfoy." she answered coldly and quickly went to another shelf.

"Listen this all was very wrong and I..." he continued as he was following her.

"I agree." she said sharply and turned to him to look him in the eyes. "This was all very wrong and I intend not to continue it. Ever again. So if you may, don't write to me during summer and don't show up under my tree and..."

"It's not your tree." he interrupted her but she already started to walk away. He caught her by her wrist.

"If you don't want to forgive me just listen to me, it's very important..."

"Nothing." she said freeing herself from his grip. "Nothing that you say is important to me anymore."

Draco did not expect that. He was so sure she would forgive him, appreciate that he went through all that trouble to talk to her, to make things right. That he risked talking to her in school. But once again she made him realize he would not always get what he wants. And that was something Draco's parents never thought him.

Not long after that the writing on the wall appeared and he said that word again. This time he's done it on purpose, to punish her for the way she treated him.

"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!" he said. And he didn't feel bad this time. Until he realized it wasn't just a word anymore. Hermione was really in danger and all of those stuff he overheard during summer were true. He had to deliver the page to her no matter how mad they were at each other.

* * *

Things were tense at Hogwarts. Ever after the writing on the wall many people thought that Harry was the heir of Slytherin. It was all absurd but something bad was going on. It made the three of them wonder a lot.

"Who can it be, though?" she asked boys in a quiet voice, as though continuing a conversation they had just been having. "Who'd want to frighten all the Squibs and Muggle-borns out of Hogwarts?"

"Let's think," said Ron in mock puzzlement. "Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are

scum?"

He looked at Hermione. Hermione looked back, unconvinced.

"If you're talking about Malfoy -" she said thinking this couldn't be true.

"Of course I am!" said Ron. "You heard him - `You'll be next, Mudbloods!'- come on, you've only got to look at his foul rat face to know it's him -"

"Malfoy, the Heir of Slytherin?" said Hermione sceptically. It made her think about how Draco tried to tell her something at the end of the summer and later in the library.

"Look at his family," said Harry, closing his books, too. "The whole lot of them have been in

Slytherin; he's always boasting about it. They could easily be Slytherin's descendants. His father's definitely evil enough." With that Hermione had to agree.

"They could've had the key to the Chamber of Secrets for centuries!"said Ron. "Handing it down, father to son...

"Well," said Hermione cautiously. Maybe that was the thing Draco tried to tell her. Maybe his father made him do it and he tried to warn her. "I suppose it's possible..."

"But how do we prove it?" said Harry darkly.

"There might be a way," said Hermione slowly, dropping her voice still further with a quick glance across the room at Percy. "Of course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We'd be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect -"

"If, in a month or so, you feel like explaining, you will let us know, won't you?" said Ron irritably.

"All right," said Hermione coldly. "What we'd need to do is to get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realizing it's us."

She knew that trying to just talk to him now was pointless. He probably didn't even care now whether she is well or not.

"But that's impossible," Harry said as Ron laughed.

"No, it's not," said Hermione. "All we'd need would be some Polyjuice Potion."

As time went by she was more eager to believe that Draco was actually the heir. Dobby's visit made it even more clear. When the potion was ready she felt excited. How weird it would be to talk to him when he sees her as an equal? As a fellow Slytherin. After The Duel Club she already had her hair and this odd feeling about Draco was growing more and more. She knew that he was staying in school for Christmas so they decided they will go with the plan during the break.

When she drunk her share of the potion and looked at her hairy hands she realized how big mistake she has made.

"I – I don't think I'm going to come after all. You go on without me" she told the boys. She has never been as angry with herself as that day.

* * *

School went on and more people have been attacked. Draco felt uneasy about everything that was going on. He knew his father was involved. He knew he was supposed to support all this. He knew he was safe. But a certain girl wasn't. Maybe he was too afraid to tell his father he didn't really agree with him in most matters. But he could do something to make things right. Even if it probably meant helping Harry Potter. Draco didn't really wanted to be seen as an evil person, he didn't wanted his family name to be marked. So he had to stop his father. In a very, very discrete way.

So during potions lesson he asked Crabbe and Goyle to make some mess. They didn't ask why, simply followed his orders. He managed to place the page in Hermione's book. He felt so relieved when he saw her later rushing to the library. He could peacefully see a Quidditch match. He felt like his trouble was over. But not even an hour later he found out Hermione was petrified and it was like a punch in the stomach. He felt all those weird things at once- concern, anger, helplessness. He felt like he's just lost something priceless. He's never lost anything that couldn't be replaced. And it that moment he knew that Hermione was important. That she wasn't to be toss around, she didn't deserved to be called names. She was a good person, who didn't deserve this fate just because her parents were muggles. And he knew for sure his father was all wrong.

After few days he sneaked from his dorms at night and went to tell her all that. Maybe because she couldn't hear him and he wasn't sure he could admit all this when she is awake. He even tried to hold her hand but a piece of paper stopped him. He figured it's the page she found. He tried to make it more visible for those two moronic friends of hers. He couldn't save her but maybe they could.

* * *

Hermione couldn't be more overjoyed when she woke up. Harry and Ron solved everything and became heroes again. Exams were cancelled and that made her a bit angry but she let it go quickly. The school was peaceful now, well if you're not counting people celebrating for the rest of the term.

She knew it was Draco who slipped informations about Basilisk into her book. She meant to thank him. So as soon as she caught his eye in the corridor she smiled at him and waved her head. He followed her just as she expected.

"Hermione, you have to know that..."

"Thank you for helping us, Draco..." they said together as soon as they were safe in an empty classroom.

"You first. Tell me everything." said Hermione.

"So you've already guessed what I did." Hermione smiled at him and nodded. "Listen, I wanted to tell you back in summer but we had this fight. I didn't know exactly what is suppose to happen but I overheard my father talking about cleaning the castle from muggle-borns, some notebook and basilisks. I saw this book opened at this page so I found it in Flourish and Blotts and ripped it out to give it to you. And then I tried to tell you but so much happened and I called you a mudblood witch I am so sorry for and..."

"Draco." said Hermione firmly. "Calm down. It's okay."

"No, It's not." he mumbled. "I hate my father for doing this. You have to know that I am not like him. I don't want to be."

"I know." she replied. "I just think you should let him know that."

"I wouldn't be able to do that for a long time, believe me."

"Well, you made your first step. You helped us stop him."

"I hardly did anything." He shrugged. "And he can never know."

"Let's not talk about it anymore." she said happily.

Maybe she was making some change in him. Maybe she was making him realize things. She decided not to be angry with him from now on. Not to fight the fact that he is not able to acknowledge her publicly yet. Just be friends with him on his terms, see how it goes.

"So you wanna talk about how I was right about Lockhart?" he teased.

She laughed. She actually missed this bastard.


	3. Chapter 3

3.

"So you already know which subjects you're going to choose?" asked Draco rising his head from the book.

"All of them probably." she said calmly.

Summer has been so far so good. They've already finished all or their homework. Now they could spend their days on more interesting things. They developed a habit of reading the same book together. They always finished the page in the same time.

"You can't chose all of them, you know." he pointed.

"I know that." said Hermione. "But I wrote to professor McGonagall. She may find a way."

"Hermione, you don't have to do that." He said, shutting the book. "You don't have to prove anything to anyone."

"I am not." she insisted. "What are your choices?"

"Ancient runes I guess. Arithmancy. And Care of Magical Creatures."

"If there's no way for me to attend all of the classes, I think I will stay with those three too." she smiled.

"Why do you even need Muggle Studies? I mean... you know..." he said trying not to offend her in any way.

"It's different perspective." she shrugged. "Your perspective. Well, not necessarily but you know... more or less."

Draco didn't say anything. He learned to stray away from subjects like this. They kept their conversations on neutral field. They talked about things they shared, not things that parted them in so many ways. He never brought up his father. She never brought up her friends. It was better that way.

"I'm leaving for France this Saturday." she informed him. "Can you come at Friday?"

"I will probably be here all summer from now on." he stated. "My parents are on non speaking terms."

"Again?" She said. "Draco, you should have told me, you know that if you have any problems you can just..."

"I don't want to speak about my father." he interrupted her. "It will pass. They are always like this. They will be fine in no time."

In all honesty, he actually doubted that. Ever since Draco's first year his father seemed uneasy. It seemed to have something to do with all those weird accidents revolving around Harry Potter. He constantly looked as he was afraid of something. Draco could not yet tell what it was. You-know-who was long gone, everybody knew that. Both years he tried to get Potter and failed. How many times could he come back?

"So France, huh?" he said to change the subject. "You know that there is lots of Wizard History there. Too bad we already finished the essay for History of Magic..."

* * *

Hermione had really enjoyed her summer. No unnecessary drama. Draco behaved well and even wrote her few letters while she was in France. And she finally got her letter from Professor McGonagall. She was allowed to do all the courses she wanted to. T he only thing she was bothered with was the news about Sirius Black. Not only the magical world was concerned. Muggle television kept showing his picture. Her parents didn't want her wandering around but she had to go and see Draco. After all, it was just two weeks left until the school. And she already learned that there was always trouble in Hogwarts. Draco was already waiting, walking circles around the Weeping Willow.

"Finally! I was starting to think you are not going to come..." he called.

"Hello Draco." she rejoiced, just happy to see him. "My parents had to make sure I'll be allright, all that drama with Sirius Black and..."

"Yeah, yeah. You'll probably have a vary interesting year with Potter and all his new drama." he hissed.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, surprised with the mention of Harry.

"You know, all this deal about You-know-who and him being Potter godfather and..."

"What?" Hermione almost shouted.

"I thought you..." Draco panicked a bit. His father was going on and on about Black and all the theories concerning his escape. Lucius was always very interested in everything that had something to do with Harry Potter. Sometimes even more than with his own son. This made Draco hate both of them even more. "You know, never mind. I really don't know more and if you tell Potter I told you that than..."

"You know I couldn't even if I wanted to." she said coldly. She didn't push him about it even though she was curious. She didn't wanted to start another year with a fight. Especially now when she had this amazing news.

"So how was France?" asked Draco, trying to calm down.

"It was amazing but I will tell you all about it later." she said with excitement. "First, I gotta tell you, I have a way to do all the classes! McGonagall is willing to help me!"

"What is it?"

"Time-turner! I am not suppose to tell anyone. But I figured you can know since you won't admit to anyone that we are friends and..." she saw that his facial expression started to change. "I don't mean it in a wrong way, just listen. You won't tell anyone I'm sure and I think we can use it to meet from time to time. In Hogwarts. If you want to of course and I..."

"Hermione!" he yelled. "Stop. Calm down. Of course I want to. But first you have to tell me what it is. Slowly."

She took a deep breath and tried to explain everything clearly. She didn't really think he would agree. But she wanted to try keep in touch during school year. And that might have just been the way. So they agreed to meet after the Feast and try to match their timetables.

* * *

Draco really wanted to be better this year. Maybe not an angel but at least try not to pick up a fight with Potter so often. He couldn't help his jealousy sometimes. Here he was. The great Potter. Always in the centre of attention, better at Quidditch, admired by everyone. He could even be friends with Hermione openly, he could spend as much time with her as he wanted. And then there was his father. Always comparing them. Always talking about how he should beat Potter at everything. Always managing to mention Draco's biggest enemy. And Draco felt his hatred even more. Especially when he remembered that he really did try to be Potter's friend. But he was rejected.

So when he entered the Hogwarts Express he wanted to sit down and read a book. But then Crabbe stated that he was bored and proposed to go wander around. And Draco found himself in Potter's compartment.

"Well, look who it is," he said, pulling open the compartment door. "Potty and the Weasel." He spotted Hermione but he did not mention her.

"I heard your father finally got his hands on some gold this summer, Weasley, Did your mother die of shock?" He never felt envy for Weasley but he couldn't bare that Potter chose this redhead instead of him. Ron stood quickly and Hermione looked at both of them nervously. Draco immediately regretted his decision. He also spotted a man sitting in the corner.

"Who's that?" he said taking an automatic step backward.

"New teacher," said Harry. "What were you saying, Malfoy?"

Draco's pale eyes narrowed; he wasn't fool enough to pick a fight right under a teacher's nose.

"C'mon," he muttered to Crabbe and Goyle, thankful that he had a reason to escape.

Some time later the Dementors came and Draco felt this weird coldness and remembered so many bad stuff. He got really scared and thought whether Hermione felt it too. He needed to talk about it. He heard her mother's screams and his father yelling curses. He heard his own cry and he heard his father talking about what a failure Draco is. But he couldn't tell that to any of his Slytherin mates. He couldn't wait to see her.

"Those Dementors!" he heard a voice. It was Longbottom. "I felt terrible, but Harry... He was worst. He fainted. Weird creatures, you have to admit it Ginny."

And he felt a little bit better. In fact it was just the excuse he needed.

"You fainted, Potter? Is Longbottom telling the truth? You actually fainted?" He shouted as they left their carriages. He elbowed past Hermione and muttered to her ear "After the feast. Remember."

* * *

She waited for him next to some abandoned classroom at the third floor. She wasn't sure whether she should yell at him for picking on Harry. But then she remembered the way he mumbled "Saturday. Remember." into her ear. She could tell he was longing for a talk. She didn't wanted to spoil that.

She spotted him at the end of the corridor. He looked so nervous, looking around like he was about to do something illegal. She didn't allow herself to be bothered by that. She entered the classroom waiting for him to follow her.

"Are you ready?" she asked, coming closer to him and putting the chain of Time-Turner around his neck. He nodded and she turned the hourglass one time. Nothing seemed to happen.

"So that's it?" he said, taking the chain off his neck. "We went back in time?"

"What did you expect? Fireworks?" she laughed. "This is how it's suppose to work. McGonagall said so."

"I don't know. It's a bit weird. I don't fell different."

"Me too. But I'm glad I didn't have to use it alone for the first time." she shrugged. "Nothing special as you see. So what did you wanted to talk about?"

"How do you know I wanted to talk about something?" he said.

"I know you Draco." Hermione raised her eyebrows, waiting.

"You know I don't like to talk to you about my family but those Dementors... It was so weird and I just have to and..."

"It's okay." she said putting her hand on his arm. "Tell me everything."

So he did. And as he spoke Hermione felt she could understand him much better. He wasn't that different from Harry after all. Maybe he had parents but he was bullied by his father just like Harry was by his uncle. And maybe it wasn't as bad, but Draco also had to witness terrible things in his house. And just like Harry, he was just unlucky. Opposite to him, Draco was born on the other side. The bad side. And he could do nothing to change it. Just like Harry couldn't change his history with You-know-who. But she decided to keep this observation to herself.

Instead she just listen. And when Draco finished she had no idea what to say to him. But listening was enough.

* * *

Draco never actually felt like he was listened to. Except his mother and aunt, but that was their job. They both raised him and were the only two people who cared. But he couldn't talk to them about this. He somehow felt thankful for Hermione. Even though most of the time their relationship caused him nothing but trouble.

The next day he caught her smile in Arithmancy. It was a good decision to take this subject. There was only seven people in class, mostly some Ravenclaws whom he didn't know. He could relax and even switch few notes with Hermione as they both sat in the back.

_Why did you sit in the back. I though you're a front-seat type, you nerd! _He wrote and passed it on to her.

_You sat here. I thought you might need my nerdy help. _She wrote him back.

_We have Care of Magical Creatures after Lunch. _

_I know. No funny business, okay? I need it to go well for Hagrid._

Draco pondered. He couldn't play nice, it wasn't like him. His Slytherin friends would notice.

_I'll try to go easy on him. I can't say nothing. I don't even like this fool._

Hermione sent him an angry look.

_He is not a fool! Do what you must, Draco, but please don't ruin it for him. Now pay attention. _

But Draco really did mean to listen to her. He made some comments about the books and he was suppose to finish there. And then Potter told him to shut up. So Draco made another comment and he was told to shut up again. After that it was only worse. Potter got on this Hippogriff and he flew and everybody cheered for him again. Once again, Draco couldn't help his jealousy. He didn't listen to Hagrid but he figured it can't be that hard.

"This is very easy," he said standing next to the creature, loud enough for Harry to,

hear him. "I knew it must have been, if Potter could do it... I bet you're not dangerous at all, are you?" he said to the Hippogriff.

"Are you, you great ugly brute?" It happened in a flash of steely talons; Draco screamed as he felt a terrible pain in his hand. He curled in the grass, blood blossoming over his robes.

"I'm dying!" He yelled. "I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!"

"Yer not dyin'!" said Hagrid, who had gone very white. "Someone help me — gotta get him outta here —"

He heard Hermione's voice as she ran to hold open the gate. Hagrid lifted him and took him to the Hospital Wing. He thought about how mad Hermione would be with him. He didn't know she was already asking Harry and Ron "You think he'll be all right?" in a nervous voice.

* * *

Hermione was furious and worried. Then worried and furious and she could not decide which feeling was stronger. When Draco showed up at Potions, his behaviour made her even more furious. He did not seem all that bad. But he was being a brat once again, probably trying to make up for the humiliation of being bitten by Buckbeak.

After the lesson ended she passed him angrily, shoving a piece of paper into his hand. Fifteen minutes later he showed up in an empty corridor and followed her to a Broom Closet. She quickly put a Time-Turner around his neck and took them back in a time.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Sure I am." he smirked. "It really does hurt, though."

"Are you out of your mind? What were you even thinking? I am so mad, Draco, don't expect me to side with you on that!" she said raising her voice.

"I'm not expecting anything. I wasn't thinking I know and now..."

"And now Hagrid can be fired now, thanks to you! You have to do something!"

"What can I do? My father was informed he would not leave it alone..."

"Than tell him it was your fault."

"You know I can't do that."

"Well, you have to do something! I am already late and you better fix this." she demeaned and tried to walk away.

"Wait." Draco caught her by her wrist. "What am I suppose to do for an hour now?"

"You can think about how to do something about Hagrid."

She hurried for her lesson. Her timetable was already killing her. She was so tired and this accident with Draco made everything worse.

He did try to talk to her during Arithmancy. Many times. She always ignored him after she found he still haven't talk to his father. But after the Fat Lady was attacked she finally agreed to meet him.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay." he said carefully.

"I am. No one got hurt."

"I know... I was just a bit worried that's all." Hermione didn't say anything. "I am going to talk to father. During Christmas. I don't want to do it through letter. I want to make things right."

"Okay." It felt weird. She actually never expected him to do such thing. She didn't think she meant as much to him. But he was really willing to fight his father for her. "Thank you."

"Can we try being friends again?" he asked hopefully.

"We never stopped being friends. I was just furious with you." she smiled.

"And you're not anymore?"

"I guess I am always furious with you. Just a little bit less now."

* * *

It took a lot of courage to talk to his father. He tried for few days but the words wouldn't come out of his mouth. And then he received a Christmas card from Hermione. "Good luck. Come back quickly!" There was no sign but he knew her handwriting. So he took a deep breath and went to the living room.

"Father. Can we talk about school?" he mumbled.

"Sit down Draco. Do you want to disappoint me again?" Lucius didn't even raise his eyes from the paper he was reading?

"No. I was just thinking about that thing with the Hippogriff... I don't think we should do such a big deal about it. I was just an accident and..."

"An accident?" Lucius finally put his paper down. "Are you trying to tell me that it wasn't that fools fault?"

"Well it was but I also wasn't listening to him and I..." Draco couldn't admit it was his doing that brought it upon him.

"You want to tell me it was your fault? You were such a fool that you made a Hippogriff bite you? You out of whole class?" Lucius started raising his voice.

"No, I just..."

"Or are you a friend of this half-caste, a friend to Harry Potter?"

"No father. I just though we don't have to... Never mind." He gave up just like that. He wasn't only a disappointment to his father but also a disappointment to himself.

Hermione waited for him right after the train arrived at Hogwarts. He could see the anxiety and hope in her eyes.

"Draco I am so glad to see you." she said with a wide smile. "I've had the worst Christmas, boys are so angry with me and... But tell me first, how did it go?

How could he admit to her that he was too much of a coward to fight for her?

"I dunno." he said. "I think he may withdraw the charges. But I don't want to promise anything, you know how he is and..."

"Oh that is just wonderful!" she said. "Hagrid has a hearing soon, I am trying to find a way to help him but maybe it will all be fine!"

She pulled him into a hug and he stiffened. He wasn't use to affection like this.

"Thank you." she whispered.

"It's nothing." he said trying not to sound guilty. He notices that her eyes were unusually red. "What happened during Christmas? Where you crying?" he asked worriedly.

"It's just this whole thing with Harry's broom. I was afraid he got it from Sirius Black so I told McGonagall and they confiscated it."

"What broom?" Draco was confused.

"Firebolt. Someone has send Harry a Firebolt for Christmas."

"Potter has got a Firebolt?" Draco felt something weird in his stomach.

"It's not the time for jealousy, Draco. He doesn't have it anymore. It was confiscated. And now both Harry and Ron act so cold towards me. I spend most of the break in the library, trying to find something to help Hagrid... I was so mad I haven't gone home. It was lonely in here."

Tears appeared in her eyes and he felt so angry with Potter. But he knew cursing him would only make things worse.

"They can't be mad at you forever. You are not alone, Hermione. You always have me."

Her smile hurt him more than her tears. He was a lying coward. A fool who couldn't get out of this golden cage that was his life.

* * *

Ron wasn't talking to her. Harry still seemed mad about his broom. It was just the her and Crookshanks. She has been sitting in the Astronomy Tower, waiting for Draco to show up.

"What is that creature doing here?" Draco welcomed her with a grin. I was weird but Crookshanks actually liked Draco.

"He needs to avoid Common Room." she said stroking the cat's ear. "Ron can as well kill him for revenge."

"You don't actually mean that."

"No, I don't." Hermione looked at the grounds. She and Draco met more often now. She didn't dare to say about Hagrid again. She was afraid that Draco lied, and she could not bear another disappointment. They did Arithmancy homework instead of talking. They laughed about Hermione's Divination stories. Hermione felt so at ease with him.

"There's a Gryffindor match coming." she said.

"I know."

"Will you behave this time, please?" she requested.

"I can't promise anything." said Draco, immediately remembering Flint's ideas.

"Just do it for me. Please." she put a pressure on the last word. He knew he wasn't able to do it. But he nodded.

Few days later Hermione was sitting in the Gryffindor stands. She was quietly observing Malfoy's actions. Once again he didn't listen, he wasn't able to oppose to his friends. It was too much. She sat in Gryffindor Tower, trying to hide her tears behind a book.

"Did you even come to the match?" She heard Harry.

"Of course I did," she answered in a strangely high-pitched voice, not looking up. "And I'm very glad we won, and I think you did really well, but I need to read this by Monday."

"Come on, Hermione, come and have same food," Harry said, looking over at Ron.

"I can't, Harry. I've still got four hundred and twenty-two pages to read!" said Hermione, felling like she was going to burst in tears any minute. "Anyway..." She glanced over at Ron too. "He doesn't want me to join in."

There was no arguing with this, as Ron chose that moment to say loudly, "If Scabbers hadn't just been eaten, he could have had some of those Fudge Flies. He used to really like them —"

Hermione couldn't take this anymore. She run to the girls dormitories and tried to focus on her school work.

* * *

Draco figured she wouldn't like to talk to him or she would yell at him a lot. And after she send him a note during Arithmancy, asking for a meeting, he was sure she chose the second option. He went to some classroom she suggested, ready for the loud reprimand. But she was silent. She didn't even say hello.

"I am so sorry..." he started.

"Harry could have died. If he hadn't known the spell or something went wrong... I didn't know you were that stupid, Draco."

"So you're siding with him?" he asked, feeling that his cheeks went red. "With the golden boy, who was ignoring you for past weeks? I was so angry with him and Weasel for doing this to you! And it was Flint's idea, I just though..." He tried to explain himself. And it was all partially true. He really was furious with Potter for treating Hermione like that.

"I don't need you to fight my battles, Draco. Besides, me and Harry were all right. It is Ron who doesn't speak to me, but that is only my problem."

"I just..." Draco started, but there was nothing he could say.

"You are just too much of a coward to say no to your friends. Or your father." She looked him right into his eyes. "Tell me, Draco, did you really talk to him? Is he really going to let Hagrid get away with this?"

Draco didn't answer. She would have found out sooner or later.

"That is just what I thought." she said shutting the door behind her.

His father was the kind of person who blames everyone for his own failures. And that was something Draco took over unintentionally. So he figured, he was not to blame. If Potter and Weasel had been nice to him from the beginning, he wouldn't do any of this. If Hagrid hadn't brought that Hippogriff to class, this whole issue with his father and Hermione wouldn't exist. So he decided to vent to them.

He attacked Wesley at Hogsmeade, but it backfired and he was humiliated by Potter once again. He reported it to Snape but Lupin managed to save his pupil. So he wrote a letter to his father asking him to take down that stupid fool of a teacher along with his Hippogriff.

* * *

_Dear Hermione, _

_We lost. I'm allowed to bring him back to Hogwarts. Execution date to be fixed. Beaky has enjoyed London. I won't forget all the help you gave us. _

_Hagrid _

Hermione red out loud, looking at Harry and Ron.

"They can't do this," said Harry. "They can't. Buckbeak. isn't dangerous."

"Malfoy's dad's frightened the Committee into it," she said, wiping her eyes. Even after their last talk, she still had a shred of hope that Draco is going to make things right. But just like always, he chose to make the wrong decision. To punish her for god knows what. "You know what he's like. They're a bunch of doddery old fools, and they were scared. There'll be an appeal, though, there always is. Only I can't see any hope... Nothing will have changed."

"Yeah, it will," said Ron fiercely. "You won't have to do all the work alone this time, Hermione. I'll help."

"Oh, Ron!" Hermione flung her arms around Ron's neck and broke down completely. Ron, looking quite terrified, patted her very awkwardly on the top of the head. It felt good to finally be close to him again.

"Ron, I'm really, really sorry about Scabbers..." she sobbed.

"Oh — well — he was old," said Ron, looking thoroughly relieved that she had let go of him.

"And he was a bit useless. You never know, Mum and Dad might get me an owl now."

She felt tears of joy running into her eyes. She might have lost her bond to Draco, but at least Ron was her friend again.

The safety measures imposed on the students since Black's second break-in made it impossible for Harry, Ron, and Hermione to go and visit Hagrid in the evenings. Their only chance of talking to him was during Care of Magical Creatures lessons.

He seemed numb with shock at the verdict. "S'all my fault. Got all tongue-tied. They was all sittin' there in black robes an' I kep' droppin' me notes and forgettin' all them dates yeh looked up fer me, Hermione. An' then Lucius Malfoy stood up an' said his bit, and the Committee jus' did exac'ly what he told 'em..."

"There's still the appeal!" said Ron fiercely. "Don't give up yet, we're working on it!"

They were walking back up to the castle with the rest of the class. Ahead she could see Draco, who was walking with Crabbe and Goyle, and kept looking back, laughing derisively.

"S'no good, Ron," said Hagrid sadly as they reached the castle steps. "That Committee's in Lucius Malfoy's pocket. I'm jus' gonna make sure the rest o' Beaky's time is the happiest he's ever had. I owe him that..."

Hagrid turned around and hurried back toward his cabin, his face buried in his handkerchief.

"Look at him blubber!" She heard Draco's voice. He, Crabbe, and Goyle had been standing just inside the castle doors, listening.

"Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic?" said Malfoy. "And he's supposed to be our teacher!"

That was it for her. She wasn't going to take it anymore. She always tried to stay out of it, but this time she wasn't letting Harry and Ron deal with this.

Both boys made furious moves toward Draco, but Hermione got there first —

SMACK!

She had slapped him across the face with all the strength she could muster. Draco staggered. Harry, Ron, Crabbe, and Goyle stood flabbergasted as Hermione raised her hand again.

"Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul — you evil —"

He could bring Hagrid down, he could do everything to hurt her, but she was not going to let him brag about it.

"Hermione!" said Ron weakly, and he tried to grab her hand as she swung it back.

"Get off, Ron!"

Hermione pulled out her wand. Draco stepped backward. Crabbe and Goyle looked at him for instructions, thoroughly bewildered.

"C'mon." Draco muttered, looking at her with hurt in his eyes. And in a moment, all three of them had disappeared into the

passageway to the dungeons.

"Hermione!" Ron said again, sounding both stunned and impressed.

"Harry, you'd better beat him in the Quidditch final!" Hermione said shrilly. "You just better had, because I can't stand it if Slytherin wins!"

"We're due in Charms," said Ron,

still goggling at Hermione. "We'd better go."

They hurried up the marble staircase toward Professor Flitwick's classroom.

She waited for the boys to get ahead of them and turned the Time-turner two times. She needed time to study for Aithmancy. She decided she had to beat Malfoy in it too. But she couldn't help to think about it, how it all turned up. Once again, she let him fool her, make her believe it was actually going to be different this year. And probably once again she is going to forgive him soon. She couldn't fight the feeling that it was impossible for them to stay away from each other. Like there was some sort of magnets between them, pulling them back and making all the wrongs that have happened almost disappear.

Suddenly she felt someone prodding her.

"Wh — what?" she said, waking with a start and staring wildly around. "Is it time to go? W — which lesson have we got now?"

"Divination, but it's not for another twenty minutes," said Harry. "Hermione, why didn't you come to Charms?"

"What? Oh no!" Hermione squeaked. "I forgot to go to Charms!"

"But how could you forget?" said Harry. "You were with us till we were right outside the classroom!"

"I don't believe it!" Hermione wailed. "Was Professor Flitwick angry? Oh, it was Malfoy, I was thinking about him and I lost track of things!"

In the end it was always about Draco.

* * *

And so the school year has come to an end once again. And once again Draco was leaving Hogwarts as a looser. He didn't win at Quidditch, despite his best efforts. The stupid Hippogriff run away. The house cup once again belong to Gryffindor. And Hermione wasn't talking to him.

His father had to travel in business so Draco went with him. For two weeks he received no news for her. And he wasn't even a bit surprised. But he felt something crack inside him. With each year he felt more need to have her around. The one person he actually let in, as much as he could. He decided not to be a coward this time.

_H.,_

_I know I messed up again. And I will probably do it again for this is who I am. It will never be easy for me but believe me I will try harder and maybe one day I will stop disappointing you. For now all I want to know is whether you will be able to forgive me. Someday. If you want to stop being friends- I understand. _

_Draco_

_Draco, _

_They leave us so to the way we took, _

_As two in whom they were proved mistaken, _

_That we sit sometimes in the wayside nook, _

_With mischievous, vagrant, seraphic look, _

_And try if we cannot feel forsaken._

_P.S I wish I could stop. But in the end I will always be your friend._

He wasn't really sure what it all meant. But it seemed that things are going to work out.


	4. Chapter 4

4.

It was too hot to talk. Draco was laying on the grass with his eyes closed. Hermione was sitting on a bench reading some muggle book. It was quiet. But the silence between them was comfortable. Once again, they were back to friendship for the summer and once again they will part ways during school year. But Draco stopped thinking what will happen in school. He liked to enjoy the time he had with her. Hermione, on the other hand, kept wondering.

"I was just reading this book on psychology..." She said.

"Of course you were." Draco mumbled in a sleepy voice.

"I was just wondering. Maybe you have a personality disorder of some kind?"

"What?"

"You know most of the time you are a jerk. But here you turn into a boy with actual humanity."

Draco sat down and stared at her with consternation.

"Calm down, I wasn't serious. But I am kind of right."

"Why do you even read this?" He asked ignoring her statement. "To mock me?"

"It's just interesting."

"How can you be interested in everything?"

"Is it bad to be curious?" She asked worriedly.

"No, of course not. I like it in you. No wonder you beat me in every subject." He laid down again putting his hands behind his head.

"That is because I actually study."

"I do too. Sometimes."

"Yeah, right." Hermione laughed. "You spend most of the time looking for someone to bully."

Draco wasn't bothered by the truth anymore. Hermione often expressed her opinion on his behaviour in Hogwarts.

"I have to keep my reputation." He said calmly.

"Yeah, I know... You and your reputation." It was sarcastic.

"Do you want me to tell you why am I doing all this?" He asked, sitting up and looking her in the eyes. Hermione nodded. "My father is constantly disappointed in me. He's mad that you have better grades. He's furious that Potter is better ad Quidditch. But after every school year we host a dinner. Crabbe, Goyle, Theo, sometimes even Pansy- they all come with their parents. And we discuss the school year. And they all like "Hey, you remember that time you insulted Potter?" "Ha, and you know what he told Granger after that?". And it makes me feel awful to be honest. But then I look at my father and he is laughing. And there is no disappointment in his eyes anymore. It seems to make up for everything else. And that is why I always do it again."

"I thought you hated your father." Hermione stated.

"I do hate him for many reasons. But he is still my father, Hermione. He raised me, he red me bedtime stories and there were times when I considered him as my hero. There is always a part of me that wants to make him proud. I want to deserve his approval."

"Do you think he is a good man?"

"In many ways he isn't. But sometimes..."

"Then it makes no sense."

"Maybe it doesn't. But that is the way I feel."

Hermione took few minutes to process his speech. She never had any reason not to love her parents. She didn't know how to live under one roof with Lucius Malfoy. Yet, she still couldn't understand it. If people loved us they should accept the way we are, not make us someone else. And Hermione believed Draco wasn't this mean brat he was at Hogwarts. The way he was with her- kind, funny, intelligent and sometimes a bit problematic- that was who he was.

"Okay." She said finally.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Insult me all you want. As long as I know you don't mean that I'll manage."

"You know I don't want to..."

"But you will. In the end you always will. But have it your way." She tried not to look at him. She felt like she had to think about it more. "I have to go."

"See you Saturday?" There was some kind of desperation in his eyes.

"Yeah. I'll be here."

* * *

Draco was soaking when he got under the tree. It was finally raining. Hermione didn't seem to hear or notice him. She was sitting with her eyes closed and some weird wires in her ears.

"Why on earth are you wearing earmuffs?" He said, touching her arm. Hermione jumped. "Is some mandrake around?"

"What?" she asked taking the weird thing off. "Oh, these are just headphones. You know, to listen to music. My parents bought me this, I don't think they realise that it won't work in Hogwarts."

"And the music comes from this box?" He asked curiously looking at the thing next to her.

"It's called disc-man. You put a CD inside and then..." Draco looked completely lost. "It's just a muggle device."

"I've heard about TV and cars, even planes but I've never seen anything like it."

"Muggle technology is very... developed. I think wizards could..." She paused not sure if it's a good idea to start that topic. "Would you like to listen with me?"

"Yeah, whatever." He said, trying so sound casual. He sat down next to her. She shivered when his arm touched hers.

"God, you are soaking." She said placing headphones between them. "It's just a muggle English band."

"Fine, just play it."

Draco listened without a word. He rarely listened to any music. He played piano a bit, but he never found it that interesting to listen to any wizard bands. But he found it calming. Maybe it wasn't the music, maybe it was Hermione sitting next to him, silently humming the words.

"_Maybe I will never be __al__l the things that I want to be. But now is not the time to cry. Now's the time to find out why. I think you're the same as me, __we__ see things they'll never see. You and I are gonna live forever... _It kind of suits us, don't you think?" she asked. "The lyrics."

"Yeah, maybe a bit."

He wanted to stay there forever, in the rain, with the music in his ears and her by his side. He realized he felt something strong in moments like this, something he couldn't name yet. But he didn't feel the urge to explain this feeling. This was the real magic. Not the wands, spells and curses- this moment.

"Draco, are you going to the World Cup?" she suddenly asked.

"Sure. Wouldn't miss it for the world." he shrugged. "Why?"

"I'm going with Weasleys. I was just curious. Now, where did I put this Ancient Runes book... I wanted to ask you something."

And the moment was destroyed. Draco's heart started to beat faster. He heard a few things during dinners. He heard there was some kind of plan for the World Cup. He knew that his father and his friend's parents are going to do something. He wasn't sure what but he was sure it was going to get very nasty.

"Got it!" Said Hermione, opening the book. "Ouch. I got a paper-cut." She said putting her finger in her mouth.

"Let me see." He took her hand in his and saw a red drop of blood. "It's red." He observed.

"Yeah, what did you expect? Mud?" She sounded offended.

"No. Of course not. I just always thought it would look different." It was stupid, he knew that. But everything he was told his whole life made him think that.

"We are the same, Draco. I hope you believe it now."

"I do. I always knew that. It's just kind of weird to know that all you believed your whole life is wrong."

"It's fine. Now can you help me with this translation? I'm not sure if I got it right."

He took the book from her and they both tried focused on their homework. The atmosphere changed. They talked about runes but their minds were drifting far away. Hopefully in the same direction.

"I'm leaving on Monday." She said when they finished.

"I guess I see you in school then."

"Yeah."

She was about to walk away when he stopped her.

"Hermione. During the Cup... Be careful, okay?"

"What do you mean?"

He didn't answer her. He pulled her into a hug. It was something new.

"Just be careful." He whispered into her hair.

* * *

With every year it was easier to switch worlds. She finally felt like she belonged, after all this friendless years. She felt so lucky having such friends like Harry and Ron. There was no unnecessary drama, no hiding, no insults. And she always though if Draco would be different if he had this.

She didn't think about him much. After four years Harry and the Weasleys became her family. They didn't have much but they still were so generous. Quidditch World Cup was an amazing experience so far. She never saw so many wizards from other countries. She red about them in books but seeing them was so much better. She had fun. She didn't think anything could spoil it for her. But, like always, something had to go wrong.

"...ah, and here's Lucius!" she heard. She turned her head and there he was. Draco with both his parents. She never saw his mother. She was very pretty but she looked like she was in pain.

"Ah, Fudge," said Mr. Malfoy, holding out his hand as he reached the Minister of Magic. "How are you? I don't think you've met my wife, Narcissa? Or our son, Draco?"

"How do you do, how do you do?" said Fudge, smiling and bowing to Mrs. Malfoy. "And allow me to introduce you to — Obalonsk — Mr. — well, he's the Bulgarian Minister of Magic, and he can't understand a word I'm saying anyway, so never mind. And let's see who else — you know Arthur Weasley, I dare say?"

It was a tense moment. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy looked at each other.

"Good lord, Arthur," he said softly. "What did you have to sell to get seats in the Top Box? Surely your house wouldn't have fetched this much?"

Fudge, who wasn't listening, said, "Lucius has just given a very generous contribution to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Arthur. He's here as my guest."

"How — how nice," said Mr. Weasley, with a very strained smile. Mr. Malfoy's eyes had returned to Hermione. She felt that her face changed colour, but stared determinedly back at him. There was a threat in her eyes. Draco shot Harry, Ron, and Hermione one contemptuous look, then settled himself between his mother and father.

She tried to focus on the game. She looked at Victor Krum and tried to figure out what is all this fuss about. He was just a Quidditch player. Sure, he could fly well, but was there anything else? He didn't look like a very bright person. She stopped herself after that. Was she really going to judge someone by their appearance?

She screamed with everyone when Ireland won. She celebrated and almost forgot all that Malfoy thing. She went to the tent with Ginny and they gossiped until they fell asleep. And then it started.

People were running in various directions. There was fire. There were people yelling, a big crowd, probably drunk. A masked group of people with they wands pointing straight upward. And above them, Hermione observed with terror, there were people. Muggles. Parents with little children, hanging in the air like dolls. She felt tears in her eyes.

"We're going to help the Ministry!" Mr. Weasley shouted over all the noise, rolling up his own sleeves. "You lot — get into the woods, and stick together. I'll come and fetch you when we've sorted this out!"

She cleared her eyes and hurried to get closer to Harry and Ron. After a while she heard Ron yell with pain.

"What happened?" she said anxiously, stopping so abruptly that Harry walked into her. "Ron, where are you? Oh this is stupid — lumos!"

She illuminated her wand and directed its narrow beam across the path. Ron was lying sprawled on the ground.

"Tripped over a tree root," he said angrily, getting to his feet again.

"Well, with feet that size, hard not to," said a drawling voice from behind them. Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned sharply. Draco was standing alone nearby, leaning against a tree, looking utterly relaxed. Too relaxed. His arms folded, he seemed to have been watching the scene at the camp-site through a gap in the trees. Ron cursed him.

"Language, Weasley," said Draco, his pale eyes glittering. "Hadn't you better be hurrying along, now? You wouldn't like her spotted, would you?"

He nodded at Hermione, and at the same moment, a blast like a bomb sounded from the camp-site, and a flash of green light momentarily lit the trees around them. She felt more tears coming to her eyes. She did give him her permission. But why on earth would he pick up a fight in a moment like that?

"What's that supposed to mean?" she said defiantly, fighting with tears.

"Granger, they're after Muggles," said Draco. "D'you want to be showing off your knickers in mid air? Because if you do, hang around... they're moving this way, and it would give us all a laugh."

"Hermione's a witch," Harry snarled. Hermione thought they got it clear this summer. They were the same.

"Have it your own way, Potter," said Draco, grinning maliciously. "If you think they can't spot a Mudblood, stay where you are."

Why was he doing that? She looked for an explanation in her head.

"You watch your mouth!" shouted Ron.

"Never mind, Ron," said Hermione quickly, seizing Ron's arm to restrain him as he took a step toward Malfoy. There came a bang from the other side of the trees that was louder than anything they had heard. Several people nearby screamed. Draco chuckled softly.

"Scare easily, don't they?" he said lazily. "I suppose your daddy told you all to hide? What's he up to — trying to rescue the Muggles?"

"Where're your parents?" said Harry, his temper rising. "Out there wearing masks, are they?"

Hermione was sure they were. Draco turned his face to Harry, still smiling.

"Well... if they were, I wouldn't be likely to tell you, would I, Potter?"

"Oh come on," she said, with a disgusted look at Malfoy, "let's go and find the others."

"Keep that big bushy head down, Granger," sneered Malfoy.

"Come on," Hermione repeated. She looked at Draco one more time. But she couldn't read anything from his face. There was no time to analyse this. She pulled Harry and Ron up the path again.

"I'll bet you anything his dad is one of that masked lot!" said Ron hotly.

"Well, with any luck, the Ministry will catch him!" said Hermione fervently. "Oh I can't believe this. Where have the others got to?"

They looked for Fred, George and Ginny and she felt scared. Be careful- Draco said before they parted few days ago. Did he know about all this? Was she really in danger? And then she heard something. It sounded as though someone was staggering toward their clearing. They waited, listening to the sounds of the uneven steps behind the dark trees. But the footsteps came to a sudden halt.

"Hello?" called Harry. There was silence. Harry got to his feet and peered around the tree. It felt like somebody was standing just beyond the range of his vision.

"Who's there?" Harry said. And then, without warning, the silence was rent by a voice unlike any they had heard in the wood; and it uttered, not a panicked shout, but what sounded like a spell.

"MORSMORDRE!"

And something vast, green, and glittering erupted from the patch of darkness it flew up over the tree tops and into the sky.

"What the —?" gasped Ron as he sprang to his feet again, staring up at the thing that had appeared. It was a colossal skull, comprised of what looked like emerald stars, with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue. Hermione immediately recognized it as a Dark Mark.

"Harry, come on, move!" She seized the collar of his jacket and was tugging him backward.

"What's the matter?" Harry said, startled to see her face so white and terrified.

"It's the Dark Mark, Harry!" Hermione moaned, pulling him as hard as she could. "You-Know-Who's sign!" "

"Voldemort's—?"

"Harry, come on!"

She felt it wasn't going to be a one time thing. Voldemort's minions were rising which meant he was also close to rise again.

* * *

He knew she would be furious. He understood that she didn't wanted to talk. But all he wanted to do is explain.

He was exhausted. He haven't slept well since The World Cup. He dreamt that his father got to her. He saw her body in the air, emptiness in her eyes. He knew she was okay. But every time he woke up he thought that those nightmares may become true in the future. He took out a piece of paper and wrote: _8PM – Astronomy Tower. _He crumpled the note in his hand and stood up. Crabbe and Goyle followed as usual.

"We saw him right up close, as well," he heard Wesley's voice. "We were in the Top Box -"

"For the first and last time in your life, Weasley." Draco stopped in the doorway.

"Don't remember asking you to join us, Malfoy," said Harry coolly.

"Weasley... what is that?" said Draco, pointing at Pigwidgeon's cage. A sleeve was dangling from it, swaying with the motion of the train, the moldy lace cuff very obvious. Ron made to stuff the robes out of sight, but Malfoy was too quick for him; he seized the sleeve and pulled.

"Look at this!" said Malfoy in ecstasy, holding up Ron's robes and showing Crabbe and Goyle. He used his other hand to drop the note on Hermione's lap.

He continued making fun of Wesley, while trying to catch a glimpse of Hermione. She took the note in her hand but did nothing more.

"So... going to enter, Weasley? Going to try and bring a bit of glory to the family name? There's money involved as well, you know... you'd be able to afford some decent robes if you won..." He started teasing, hoping to get her attention.

"What are you talking about?" snapped Ron.

"Are you going to enter?" Draco repeated. "I suppose you will, Potter? You never miss a chance to show off, do you?"

"Either explain what you're on about or go away, Malfoy," said Hermione testily. He saw a piece of paper sticking out from The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4. She took it but didn't read it.

"Don't tell me you don't know? You've got a father and brother at the Ministry and you don't even know? My God, my father told me about it ages ago... heard it from Cornelius Fudge. But then, Father's always associated with the top people at the Ministry... Maybe your father's too junior to know about it, Weasley... yes... they probably don't talk about important stuff in front of him..."

He laughed one more time and left. Hermione knew about the Triwizard Tournament. They talked about it during the summer. He told her about Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. He was glad she kept it a secret. He thought that maybe she wasn't that mad after all.

He waited two hours. The wind was cold and his fingers went numb. She didn't show up. Next day during their lessons she snapped at him after one of his comments. Her words felt like poison. He wondered if that is how she feels when he calls her names. But that time during world cup was different, he did it for a reason and he had to explain.

* * *

Hermione came to conclusion that first days of school are always bad luck for Draco. Last year the Hippogriff incident, and this year Moody. She was so furious with him that for a minute there she thought he deserved it. But the sympathy for him always won with her anger. She blew him off the other day. Today she felt like she needed to fix it.

"Don't talk to me," Ron said quietly to Harry and Hermione as they sat down at the Gryffindor table a few minutes after Moody transfigured Draco into a ferret.

"Why not?" said Hermione in surprise.

"Because I want to fix that in my memory forever," said Ron, his eyes closed and an uplifted expression on his face. "Draco Malfoy, the amazing bouncing ferret."

Hermione forced herself to laugh.

"He could have really hurt Malfoy, though," she said. "It was good, really, that Professor McGonagall stopped it -"

"Hermione!" said Ron furiously, his eyes snapping open again, "you're ruining the best moment of my life!"

Hermione made an impatient noise and began to eat at top speed again.

"Don't tell me you're going back to the library this evening?" said Harry, watching her.

"Got to," said Hermione thickly. "Loads to do."

"But you told us Professor Vector -"

"It's not schoolwork," she said. She finished her food and left her place. She needed to find Draco.

She hid behind some statue in the dungeons, close to Snape's office and she waited. Moody left first and luckily went opposite direction. Draco followed him few minutes later.

"Hey." she whispered and he turned around. He smiled at her but made no move. He looked around nervously. They were alone.

"Classroom five at second floor. In ten minutes." she said seeing his confusion and hurried to the staircase.

"Hermione, whatever you found me for, you have to listen to me first!" he ordered as he entered the room. Hermione crossed her arms and looked at him calmly.

"I said all those things during Cup to scare you away. I thought that maybe if... I was too harsh because I thought you will get hurt and go as far away from me as you can. And when I spoke about you being at those muggles place... I wanted to give you a massage. My father spoke a lot about getting to you. I don't know if there were just threats or he was serious but I couldn't take any chances."

"He wanted to get to me?" Hermione remembered the look Lucius gave her that day. "What did I ever do to him?"

"What did those muggles do to him?" Draco said. "Nothing. And you... you are a friend of Potter's. Who knows what he could... Never mind. I'm really sorry."

"It's fine." She felt a bit overwhelmed. "I was so confused, I thought that after I gave you my permission you decided to strain it. I'm glad there was a reason behind it." She paused for a minute. "So your father was there?" She wanted to get that clear.

"Yes." Draco looked down. "I overheard that they are planning something. I warned you, remember?"

"Yeah." She touched his hand and he looked up at her. "It was very unprofessional of Moody to do this to you. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. But Potter and Weasel are not going to let me forget it."

"Like you didn't let them forget many things." Hermione smiled at him. "I wonder if this is going to end someday."

"Never." Draco stated. He noticed that she held a book about House Elves. "What is that? Are you writing a paper on House Elves?"

"No. I am going to fight for their rights." Hermione said proudly.

"What?" Draco laughed. "Are you kidding me?" Hermione gave him a furious look. "Okay, fine. Just tell me about it first and I'll laugh after.

* * *

The excitement in the castle was rising wit each day. Delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were suppose to arrive by the end of the month. Draco wondered if those students are any different. He wanted to make new friends. Crabbe and Goyle were more irritating with every year. He liked talking to Theo but they weren't that close. He sometimes discussed his homework with Blaise but he was a bit of a loner so they didn't hang out much. He saw Hermione two or three times but she was busy with this whole S.P.E.W thing.

So at October 30th he made sure that the Durmstrang students sat at his house table. He was never obsessed with Victor Krum but when he sat next to him he introduced himself.

"Hey, great game at the World Cup." He said trying to sound casual. "Very impressive."

"Thanks." Krum's accent was weird. "You play Quidditch at Hogwarts too?" He asked.

"Yeah. I'm the seeker." Draco nodded. "But this year there won't be any matches. Because of the tournament."

Krum didn't comment that. Draco decided not to force him into a conversation. He spoke with some other students. After the Goblet was presented, he found out all of them are going to put their names in.

The next day Draco cheered with everybody as Krum was chosen. But when Potter's name was chosen by the Goblet he felt unease. Draco knew the rules of the tournament and he wasn't stupid. He knew Potter couldn't have put his name in. He caught Hermione's look. She looked worried. For a second there, Draco thought that maybe his father had anything to do with it. Hermione found him in the crowd when they were leaving the Great Hall.

"Tomorrow, 5PM." she said looking at the other direction.

He came earlier. He was eager to see her, but not because of what happened. Three meetings a month weren't enough for him. Day by day, he found himself thinking about her. He missed her, even though he saw her everyday.

"Hey." She slipped into the classroom. "What a crazy day."

"I know."

"Do you know anything about this?" Hermione seemed devastated. "I've been thinking all night, and Draco, I know you hate Harry but I don't think it's a coincidence. The dark mark during the cup and now this. There is something bad going on."

"I don't know anything." He said and hoped that she believed him. "But you are right, I think there is a connection. I thought about it and this time I don't think my father was involved."

"I didn't say that..."

"But I know you thought about it."

"I'm scared. I'm trying not to show it but I am." She confessed.

"Me too." He said putting his arm around her. "But we are safe at Hogwarts."

"I'm worried about Harry." She started crying. Draco knew there was no point in being jealous of him now.

"I know." He didn't know how to help her.

"Draco It's better if we don't see each other for now." She said. "With your father threatening me like this during the Cup and now this... It may be safer."

"But we are at Hogwarts." Draco opposed.

"It doesn't really matter. Besides I have to focus on helping Harry. In case of emergency... Just pass me a note during Arithmancy."

"But..." Draco looked for more buts.

"I'm sorry Draco." she said. She sounded like she wouldn't bear any objections. "But this is how it has to be."

She left without goodbye. He didn't know who to hate more: Potter or his father and his friends.

* * *

It wasn't easy for her too. But she decided it was for the best. She didn't have time for Draco's drama this year. And now she understood why they could never be friends publicly. If his father found out he would crush her. The fact that Ron and Harry weren't on speaking terms made it even worse. And then, before Potions, she saw those stupid badges.

SUPPORT CEDRIC DIGGORY—THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION!

"Like them, Potter?" said Draco loudly as Harry approached. "And this isn't all they do – look!"

He pressed his badge into his chest, and the message upon it vanished, to be replaced by another one, which glowed green: POTTER STINKS!

"Oh very funny," Hermione said sarcastically to Pansy Parkinson and her gang of Slytherin girls, who were laughing harder than anyone, "really witty."

"Want one, Granger?" said Malfoy, holding out a badge to Hermione. "I've got loads. But don't touch my hand, now. I've just washed it, you see; don't want a Mudblood sliming it up."

She wasn't hurt by his words. She knew he didn't mean them and she knew he was also angry with her. But Harry had reached for his wand. People all around them scrambled out of the way, backing down the corridor.

"Harry!" She said warningly.

"Go on, then, Potter," Draco said quietly, drawing out his own wand. "Moody's not here to look after you now – do it, if you've got the guts -"

For a split second, they looked into each other's eyes, then, at exactly the same time, both acted.

"Funnunculus!" Harry yelled.

"Densaugeo!" screamed Draco.

Jets of light shot from both wands, hit each other in mid air, and ricocheted off at angles — Harry's hit Goyle in the face, and Malfoy's hit Hermione. She started whimpering in panic clutching her mouth. Ron had hurried forward to see what was wrong with her; She felt her teeth growing very quickly past her bottom lip, toward her chin – panic-stricken, she felt them and let out a terrified cry.

"And what is all this noise about?" said a soft, deadly voice.

Snape had arrived. The Slytherins clamoured to give their explanations; Snape pointed a long yellow finger at Draco and said, "Explain."

"Potter attacked me, sir -"

"We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry shouted.

"- and he hit Goyle – look -"

Snape examined Goyle, whose face now resembled something that would have been at home in a

book on poisonous fungi.

"Hospital wing, Goyle," Snape said calmly.

"Malfoy got Hermione!" Ron said. "Look!"

He forced Hermione to show Snape her teeth – she was doing her best to hide them with her hands, though this was difficult as they had now grown down past her collar. Pansy Parkinson and the other Slytherin girls were doubled up with silent giggles, pointing at her from behind Snape's back. Snape looked coldly at Hermione, then said, "I see no difference."

Hermione let out a whimper; her eyes filled with tears, she turned on her heel and ran, ran all the way up the corridor, straight to the hospital wing.

She knew that Draco aimed at Harry but it didn't make her feel any better. Madam Pomfrey immediately took care of her. She gave her a mirror and cast a spell.

"Call me when they get back to their normal size." She said and went away to take care of Goyle.

Hermione waited patiently. She never liked her teeth. He parents made her wear braces when she was younger. But nothing could shrink her front teeth. She wanted to use magic but her parents never let her. But now it wasn't her doing. When her teeth came back to the usual size she still waited. She called the nurse a bit later. She decided she should thank Draco for this one day.

* * *

The first task was behind and Christmas were very close. Draco was thankful for the Tournament. He didn't wanted to come home. He rarely wrote letters to his parents. His father sickened him. But for the sake of his mother he responded once in a while. He was sitting on the steps to the Owlery, trying to rig up few sentences. It was early morning and it was freaking cold but suddenly he felt something warm on his side.

"Crookshanks." He called. "Hey buddy. Haven't seen you in a while."

He placed the can onto his knees.

"And where is Hermione?" He asked the cat, feeling a bit stupid.

"Hey." He heard a vice behind him. It was Victor Krum.

"Oh, hey." Draco stood up. "I was just..."

"You know this girl? Hermy-own?" he asked.

"Hermi... You mean Granger? "

"Yeah, you just said her name."

"It's her cat and I was just..." Draco tried to explain himself. But Krum had no idea about how things at Hogwarts were. "Why are you asking?"

"The ball. I want to ask her."

"Oh." Draco forgot about the Yule Ball. "Yeah, go ahead. I don't really like her but it's your choice."

"Why? Something wrong with her?" Asked Krum.

"No. There is nothing wrong with her." Draco said quietly.

"Thanks." Krum said and walked away.

Draco felt something weird in his chest. Was that jealousy? What was this girl doing to him? But then he thought, why would she say yes? She didn't like boys like Krum. She preferred brains to sports. She would refuse this poor guy. But what if she says yes?

"What do you think, Crookshanks?" he asked the cat. But Crookshanks just purred and walked away. Draco realized that he needed to get a date himself.

That turned out to be easy. He just ask Pansy. They always had a weird relationship. He didn't consider her a friend but she always followed him, always tried to be close to him. So he decided she won't refuse. He didn't really care about who he was going with. He was more concerned about Hermione. He waited for an opportunity to find out.

"Hermione – who are you going to the ball with?" He heard Weasleys voice in the entrance hall.

"I'm not telling you, you'll just make fun of me." Said Hermione. What did that mean? Why would he make fun of Krum?

"You're joking, Weasley!" said Draco, trying to find out more. "You're not telling me someone's asked that to the ball? Not the long-molared Mudblood?"

Hermione didn't say anything, instead she said loudly, waving to somebody over his shoulder, "Hello, Professor Moody!"

Draco still remembered the ferret incident. He went pale and jumped backward, looking wildly around for Moody, but he was still up at the staff table, finishing his stew.

"Twitchy little ferret, aren't you, Malfoy?" said Hermione scathingly and the trio walked away leaving Draco without an answer.

* * *

She couldn't say she wasn't surprised with Krum's invitation. He annoyed her for some time now, always being around. Now she understood why. They talked for some time and she found out that she misjudged him. So she agreed to go to the ball with him. And she actually felt excited. She was always a bookworm. She never really cared for clothes and appearance. But she was a girl after all. And when she was little she wanted to experience something like all those princesses in the books. Wear a pretty dress and dance all night. So she put a lot of work into her appearance. Not for Krum's pleasure, but for her own. She wrote to her mother and she had sent her the perfect, blue dress. She bought some magical hair product to make her hair straight and twisted it up into an elegant knot at the back of her head. She meant to have fun.

Victor was a perfect gentlemen and she really enjoyed talking to him. She was always eager to find out more about other cultures. He was also a good dancer. And it was really magical, but few times she caught herself looking for Draco in the crowd. They eyes met once and he smiled at her, but she quickly looked away. Then Ron had to spoil everything and she wasn't in the mood for a party anymore. She left for a bit, sitting down in some empty corridor.

"Are you crying?" She heard a familiar voice. It was Draco.

"Leave me alone, before someone sees us." She said hiding her face in her arms. But few seconds later she felt his hand on his shoulder.

"What happened?" He asked with a warm voice.

"Nothing."

"Come on, let's go in there." He said, making her go into a classroom behind them.

"It's nothing, Draco. Just Ron spoiling everything." She said, sitting up on one of the desks.

"You looked like you were having fun." He stated. There was something weird in his voice.

"I was. Victor is very nice."

"I bet he is." Now he sounded like he was angry. Hermione didn't respond. "You look beautiful."

Draco added.

"Thanks."

"How is everything?"

"Fine."

"Hermione, look at me." Draco started to get annoyed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, really." She raised her eyes at him.

"You look different." He noticed.

"Yeah, It's the spell you've hit me with. My teeth are smaller now." She send him a weak smile.

"They were okay before."

"What do you want, Draco?" She asked after a moment of silence. "I thought I made it clear that..."

"I miss you. Damn, I don't know, I wish we came together... And you came with Krum and it made me angry, I don't know why..." Hermione didn't say anything. She looked confused.

"Are you jealous?" She finally asked. No matter what his answer would be- both would be bad.

"I..." He started. "Would you like to dance?"

"Here?"

"It's not like we can dance down there."

She slowly nodded. They could barely hear the music. Draco took her hand and pulled her closer. It was something new. They hugged occasionally, but only for a short time. Their arms sometimes touched when they were reading together. They were close from time to time. But this was a new type of closeness. Their faces were inches away. Hermione didn't even think about dancing, she moved automatically, like in a dream. She felt panic raising in her stomach. And then Draco leaned closer and looked into her eyes. And she didn't move back. So he let his lips touch hers. And at that moment so many emotions exploded inside her. She didn't even know that she was longing for this kiss. Longing to somehow get close to him. But at the same time she knew it was wrong and that she has to stop now until it's too late. She pulled away.

Draco looked as confused as she was. She could tell he didn't plan it.

"Why did you do that?" she breathed quietly.

"I just... I couldn't stop thinking that Krum is going to kiss you tonight. And I wanted to do that first."

"That is not a good reason. If you just..."

"No. I really wanted to do that. For some time now. But I didn't realise that until tonight."

Hermione stepped back and sat down again. The way she felt couldn't be explained by books. And she hated that.

"Draco, you know this can't be like this. We can't."

"I know. But it's so good to feel like that. To feel anything. I don't ever want to stop. Do you?"

"It doesn't really matter what we want, Draco."

"With every year I am learning that there are actually things I want but can't have. That is not how I was raised. No one prepared me for this." He took her hand into his and touched her face. "Do you think maybe one day..."

"No." She said harshly. "I don't know. For now we have to stay away from each other. And it will go away."

"I don't want..."

"Neither do I, Draco!" She almost yelled. "But like I said, It's not about what we want. We both know that there is something bad going on. And by all book definitions we are enemies. And in case of a war we are standing on opposite sides."

"Books definitions are not always right. We are not enemies by heart." One more time it was clear to her that he needed her more that she needed him. She had friends and family to help her get through everything. And he was stuck on the bad side. Maybe she was the only one who could help him escape it. But for now she just didn't know how.

"I know we aren't." She said. "But this is not enough to make it last. It will never be enough. Not unless it's all over. And it haven't even started yet."

Before she could protest he leaned in for a kiss again. And that's how she found out how goodbye tastes like. And she wandered how many times would she taste it again.

"Go." He ordered, not even looking at her.

She came back to the Great Hall as nothing happened.

* * *

The rest of the school year he spent on reading and delivering gossips to Rita Skeeter. He felt like he turned into a plant, he wasn't able to think or speak clearly. And then all of their worst fears came true.

When Potter came back with Diggory's body, screaming that Voldemort came back, Draco haven't given it a second thought. And at the end of the day Hermione found him. He already knew what she was going to tell him. She threw her arms around him and started to weep.

Draco was calm. He promised himself he would be strong.

"Hermione, wait." He said noticing something in her hair. He quickly took a small beetle into his hand. "Don't say anything. I should have done it months ago."

He took out his wand and in a second, the insect was trapped in a small jar. Hermione looked at him with confusion.

"I'll tell you after we talk." He said, sitting down next to her. "So it was him, right? My father. Tell me what happened."

"He came back." Hermione whispered. "He has a body now and he called all the Death Eaters. Your father, and Crabbe's and Goyle's... And it was Moody! He was the one who messed with the Goblet!"

"Moody?!" Draco was shocked.

"It was Crouch's son. He drunk Polyjuice Potion. He posed as Moody. There was a Death Eater in Hogwarts. For the whole year." She begun to shiver.

"Shhh. Calm down." He said putting his hand around her shoulder.

"He is back." She repeated. "What are you going to do now? Your father swore his loyalty to him."

"I don't know." Draco whispered. "It doesn't seem real yet. But it will be all right. We will be fine."

This time it was her who leaned down for a kiss. The war has started. And few months ago keeping her distance seemed like a wise idea. But now she thought that maybe they can help one another get through this.

"So what's in the jar?" She said, pulling away. Draco let out a smile.

"Rita Skeeter. She's an Animagus. That is how she..."

"...overheard all conversations!" Hermione finished for him. "Oh my god, It all makes sense now. Would you mind if I..."

"She's all yours." Draco passed the jar into her hands.

"It will all be twice as hard, Draco." She said. "You know that, right? I'm not even sure If we will be able to meet very often during summer. We can't let anyone know a thing about us."

"We've never let anyone know. That's the whole magic of it."

"I don't think I would call it that..."

"This, whatever it is, between us. It belongs to us. And whatever happens, no one can take it away from us. No one can spoil it with their opinions or try to destroy it. Not the war, not my father, not even Voldemort. You can't destroy something that doesn't exist. And this exists only for us."

"I hope you are right." Hermione said, getting rid of the tears in her eyes. "We can't use letters anymore. I have to come up with something different real quick. While I can use magic."

"I'm sure you will think of something really clever." Draco smiled and kissed her forehead. They were just two teenagers, oblivious to what's ahead of them. But they had this moment now, and it was their right to enjoy it. Before everything falls apart.


End file.
